22 Apr Thu 2010
Westminster Farmers' Market Report for 04-23-10
Westminster Farmers’ Market Report from Maple Heights Farm
Opening Day is Upon Us…
The Westminster Farmers’ Market will be opening on Friday, May 7th! Come and enjoy the festivities, shop for your dinner, visit with friends and neighbors and relax! For our opening day, we will be giving away compost for your garden. Bring a bucket and take home some of this “black gold” that will give your plants the healthy start that they need! And for the really good stuff, expect to find local meats, cheeses, eggs, artisan breads, desserts and confections in the market on opening day!
Busking Opportunities in Westminster…
The farmers’ market is looking for entertainers for the season. “Busking” is a great opportunity to showcase and market your talent, practice in front of a VERY friendly and non-intimidating crowd, or work the kinks out of a new routine! If you have a special talent that you would like to share, please contact us WestminsterFM@hotmail.com. If you have access to a large group of talented individuals, consider signing up as a group. How about St. Edward’s Talent day and Westminster Elementary Talent day! I’ve been to a few local talent shows and I know there is plenty of talent out there! You provide the talent and I’ll provide your audience (remember, very friendly and non-intimidating!).
Last year we had so much incredible talent! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. A few weeks ago, my children started juggling. I think it all started when a few wads of aluminum foil were discovered laying around the pantry. After some practice time, this turned into desperate requests to go to the toy store (something they don’t usually request) and the stage was set for the week. Hours went into practice and storytelling about Aurelia Carter who appeared at our market on one rainy day last season. Aurelia brought all kinds of juggling supplies, but she also brought a LOT of patience and extra supplies which she used as she spent hours teaching the children at the market to juggle. Kids are funny creatures and you don’t always know what impacts them (this is demonstrated to every parent, every single day), but the Aurelia made a huge impact and I’m sure she has no idea of this. My children spent hours telling me the smallest details of what they learned with her that day. I was so impressed that she meant so much to them and that even after so much time; they remembered the day so well! If she is available this year, I hope you don’t miss her performance! I know we won’t!
Finishing up the Winter, and our Oil, and our Propane…
Winter is over and spring is taking over the landscape. In our house, my goal was to make it through the winter on one tank of oil and one tank of propane. The danger in doing this is that you do not get topped up (ever) and so you must watch the gauges more closely and I can assure you that after five months, you are not in the habit of watching the gauges! Well, (for the first time in my adult life) we ran out of propane -- 15 minutes before the delivery arrived and we ran out of oil forty-eight hours later. How is that for timing! Our last delivery of oil was around November 15th, five months ago, and my dim memory tells me that the propane delivery was a month before that. So, we were able to stretch our winter tank of oil to 5 months! I’m quite certain that turning off the oil during the day was a big mistake and I think we may have gotten seven months out of the tank if I had not attempted this (and it was a pain in the neck – all that turning the furnace off and turning it back on). If there were fewer of us in this house (there are six), and if our furnace was not as efficient as it is, this may have been more beneficial. I think I signed up for will-call service and went 8 months over the summer season on one tank. Yes, the water coming into the house may have been a bit colder in the winter, but the basement temperature was certainly warmer throughout the winter as our best woodstove is within 10 feet of the water tank. I hope to get 8 months out of this tank which will require a fill-up in December (though I will watch the oil prices and consider filling up in September instead) and then another 8 months on next winter’s tank-full. This may be possible because, except for Christmas break, there will only be five of us in the house next winter. I’m also considering a pre-heating (warming) system that will circulate water from the tank through a baseboard type heater (with all those little fan thingies) near the wood stove (but not close enough where boiling will be a danger. Preheating the water to 100 degrees using already available heat may mean we can get over a year out of a tank of oil. I’d like that.
Orders are Opening for Mass Local Food…
Mass Local Food has quite a variety of foods listed and orders will be opening on April 23rd. The variety of meat exceeds any local butcher, and unlike local butcher stores, the meat must be farmed by the listing producer, meaning it was raised by them, not purchased to be resold. You will also find locally roasted coffees, locally grown and milled flours and whole grains, and delicious whole grain breads and baked goods. We are hoping to add locally fermented pickles and some all natural salad dressings this month (can’t wait to ban chemically laden ranch from my refridge). Visit the website for one-stop-shopping and have your items delivered to Westminster on May 7th! I hope you didn’t miss out on those gorgeous goose eggs for your Easter egg hunt last month! I know I’ll be looking for more of those!
Visit our Westminster Farmers’ Market website…
The Westminster Farmers’ Market website is being updated with vendors for the 2010 season. Visit for ideas on how you can help the farmers’ market, participate as a vendor, or get information on our schedule for the season. Visit us at www.WestminsterFarmersMarket.com.
Maple Heights Farm…
At Maple Heights Farm, we are well stocked with meat. Our products are available either through Mass Local Food (I’ve finally listed my crackers for those that have been waiting) or by pre-ordering by email. You can see our complete inventory on our website.
Kerrie Hertel
www.WestminsterFarmersMarket.com